HOPE
OTES
5 NOV. 1
The Hope
Standard Office: 604.869.2421 www.hopestandard.com
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2014
news@hopestandard.com
11 HOPE CANDIDATES
AT A GLANCE
The 13 council contenders share their views on local municipal issues
16 LYTTON-BORN
AUTHOR VISITS YALE Harvey Chute will read from his newly published novel on Nov. 15
KERRIE-ANN SCHOENIT / THE STANDARD
19 SOCCER TEAM
GEARING UP SEASON Hope Secondary’s senior girls’ already prepping for the spring league
INSIDE
Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Community . . . . 14 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Classifieds . . . . . 21 $
1(PLUS GST)
Remembrance Day Hundreds of people braved cold temperatures on Tuesday to honour Canada’s soldiers and veterans at the Hope Memorial Park Cenotaph on Remembrance Day. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War. For more coverage of the event, see pages 4-5.
Society finds new homes for shelter dogs Kerrie-Ann Schoenit Hope Standard
A local volunteer-run society is giving animals a second chance. Our Last Hope Animal Rescue finds new homes for adoptable dogs in high-kill shelters in southern California, as well as local dogs who are in immediate danger. On average, the society has six rescues available at any given time. “We are their last hope. Without us, they would be dead,” said president/founder Jeneane Ruscheinsky. “The dogs we bring in are not sitting in our shelters here.” Ruscheinsky opened the adop-
tion centre on Commission Street in July 2014, after running Our Last Hope Animal Rescue for four years. She got involved with animal rescue after the 2010 slaughter of sled dogs in Whistler, where she initiated a petition to have Canadian animal cruelty legislation changed. “All I’ve wanted to do is save lives. The SPCA is low-kill and they’re not overcrowded,” said Ruscheinsky. “Seventeen per cent of dogs across B.C. and Canada are euthanized yearly but those are due to behaviour, sickness, and age.” When Ruscheinsky started seeing Facebook posts from animal ac-
tivists about the kill shelters in the United States, she started sending money to help dogs in Florida. Due to the distance, it was not feasible to find them new homes in Canada. However, when Ruscheinsky found out about the crisis in California, she jumped on the opportunity. “California having the I-5 on the West Coast was a heck of a lot easier,” she said. “So, rather then send money to these dogs, I was going to save three dogs and re-home them. Here I am four years later saving three dogs, three dogs, three dogs. I just can’t sit by and watch them die when people want them.”
Ruscheinsky works directly with shelters in southern California. She said about three quarters of the animals taken in are euthanized after an average stay of five days. Animal rescue organizations throughout North America are helping reduce euthanasia rates, but shelters are still overflowing with dogs. These animals are either surrendered by owners or picked up by animal control. Ruscheinsky pointed out that valid ID is required to reclaim a lost animal, which presents a predicament for illegal immigrants. Continued on 2
CINDY YOUNG Remember to vote
for Mayor
“The de¿nition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result!” Authorized by Cindy Young cyoung@live.ca